Sharpening A .09mm Lead?

[Paul Raposo]

Hey all.

 

Like the topic title says; is there any tool, or method to sharpen a .09mm lead in the Cross pencils?

[watch_art]

in olden days they'd have a piece of sandpaper or some such stuff glued to the little wooden box that the extra leads would come in, to sharpen the point on. Just put the lead in the pencil and scribble some lines side to side on this stuff and twist the pencil as you scribble, so you get all the way around it.

[LisaN]

a staedtler pencil lead sharpener for drafting pencils might work:

tub sharpener

http://www.staedtler.com/upload/502_1191.jpg

[RLTodd]

When I used to use mine I would rotate the pencil and hold it at a lower angle when I wanted to keep a sharper point. Usually, I just wrote larger and it didn't matter.

 

Then I got my first Pentel with the 0.5mm lead and it didn't matter anymore.

[nxn96]

Hey all.

 

Like the topic title says; is there any tool, or method to sharpen a .09mm lead in the Cross pencils?

The lead size is why I quit using a Cross many years ago in favor of a Pentel or Pilot .05mm lead pencil (I'm an accountant).

 

A quarter turn of the pencil in your hand every so oftern or using a scratch pad and holding the pencil at a lower angle are about the only ways I know to "fix" your problem without potentially damaging the pencil. Unfortunately, it will only take a couple of words to wear down the point- and thus, cause you to start the process over again, but it's the only way I know around the problem for this size lead.

[Fuddlestack]

Isn't there a factor of 10 adrift somewhere? 9/100 mm and 1/20 mm are awfully tiny.

[watch_art]

Isn't there a factor of 10 adrift somewhere? 9/100 mm and 1/20 mm are awfully tiny.

 

 

AUGH! YOU'RE RIGHT! It's a trick question. He was just testing us!

 

 

 

 

[nxn96]

Isn't there a factor of 10 adrift somewhere? 9/100 mm and 1/20 mm are awfully tiny.

If you are dealing with 7, 14 or 21 column accounting spreadsheets (in the pre-Excel world), the difference between .9 and .5 matters; otherwise, perhaps not so much.

[LisaN]

0.9 mm is big, 0.09 mm is very small. Pencil lead is 0.3 t0 1.1 mm.

[RLTodd]

Isn't there a factor of 10 adrift somewhere? 9/100 mm and 1/20 mm are awfully tiny.

If you are dealing with 7, 14 or 21 column accounting spreadsheets (in the pre-Excel world), the difference between .9 and .5 matters; otherwise, perhaps not so much.

 

Yes, that is what I found.

 

The other thing was that for certain types of audit work Lotus/Excel/Multiplan/Visicalc just didn't cut it. The 0.5mm Pilot was a perfect fit to the multi column pads.

[Paul Raposo]

Isn't there a factor of 10 adrift somewhere? 9/100 mm and 1/20 mm are awfully tiny.

 

I didn't know there was going to be math

 

You are correct, though, it should have read 0.9mm.

[nxn96]

Isn't there a factor of 10 adrift somewhere? 9/100 mm and 1/20 mm are awfully tiny.

If you are dealing with 7, 14 or 21 column accounting spreadsheets (in the pre-Excel world), the difference between .9 and .5 matters; otherwise, perhaps not so much.

 

Yes, that is what I found.

 

The other thing was that for certain types of audit work Lotus/Excel/Multiplan/Visicalc just didn't cut it. The 0.5mm Pilot was a perfect fit to the multi column pads.

My point (pun intended) exactly. By the time Cross, Parker, et. al. got into the .5 game, Pilot and Pentel were too well entrenched in the "Accountant" market, and more readily available at a junior auditor's price point.

[drifting]

No advice to give, other than to agree that trying to get a .9 pencil to write smaller is an exercise in futility. If you love the Cross, learn to love the .9 line. If you need something smaller, get another pencil.

 

Oh, and I'm reporting the spam above.

 

Ryan.

Edited August 13, 2010 by drifting

[Ernst Bitterman]

A trick taught me by my architect father, who had frequent reference to that tub-style sharpener for his... 1.1 or maybe even 1.3mm mechanical pencils, is the same as RLTodd offers-- rotate the pencil in use, and it keeps a relatively consistent point. Of course, it's easier when all you do is straight lines, but with the various pencils of the 1930s through '50s I've tried, it is workable in a writing context.

[drifting]

A trick taught me by my architect father, who had frequent reference to that tub-style sharpener for his... 1.1 or maybe even 1.3mm mechanical pencils, is the same as RLTodd offers-- rotate the pencil in use, and it keeps a relatively consistent point. Of course, it's easier when all you do is straight lines, but with the various pencils of the 1930s through '50s I've tried, it is workable in a writing context.

 

I never found that trick did much for me when writing with a .9 pencil: it keeps the lead from getting a flat spot, but doesn't necessarily keep as sharp a point/as fine a line as I'd like. I had better luck with harder leads, but those are sometimes tougher to find, and aren't, of course, as dark.

 

Ryan.

[Chris]

Just buy a new Cross - they have 0.5mm leads now.

 

Me, I like the almost unobtainable 0.7mm

 

Chris

[nxn96]

Just buy a new Cross - they have 0.5mm leads now.

 

Me, I like the almost unobtainable 0.7mm

 

Chris

Did Cross do the 0.7mm pencil? That's a nice "general purpose" lead; one that I'm surprised is not more common as compared to the 0.5 that everyone seems to have adopted.

[Chthulhu]

0.9 mm is big, 0.09 mm is very small. Pencil lead is 0.3 t0 1.1 mm.

 

JetPens offers 0.2 mm leads (though no pencils that use it?), and there are clutch-type pencils up to at least 5.6 mm (I have leads this size, but no pencil yet). 2 mm is common for drafting pencils, and the Lamy Scribble takes a 3 mm I believe.

[Chris]

Just buy a new Cross - they have 0.5mm leads now.

 

Me, I like the almost unobtainable 0.7mm

 

Chris

Did Cross do the 0.7mm pencil? That's a nice "general purpose" lead; one that I'm surprised is not more common as compared to the 0.5 that everyone seems to have adopted.

 

I don't think so. At least, I've never seen a Cross one but other pecils are available in this size (but not being Cross, I've not bought them). But, in another thread here I saw a reference to a 0.7mm pencil refill from Cross that fits their ballpoint! I'm going to have to investigate this.

Chris

[crosspens]

HI Everyone

i thought i would add something to this thread as Cross sell a 0.7mm pencil converter which fits most of our Ballpoint pens as simple as a refill and can be refilled too. It allows you to make collections that otherwise are not possible as a pencil possible to do so.

 

heres a link and a picture of it

 

 

http://www.cross-pen...ads-and-erasers

 

Switch-It converter image